Elderly Woman, Officers, Firefighters Sickened In Bellevue
BELLEVUE (KDKA) -- An elderly woman and nine emergency responders were hospitalized this morning after they were sickened by some type of fumes inside of a home in Bellevue.
Hazmat officials were preparing to go into the home on Lincoln Avenue just after noon.
Some streets were blocked off in the area, but there have been no evacuations as officials believe whatever sickened the woman and the first responders is inside the home.
KDKA's Jon Greiner reports that the incident initially began as a medical alert when the woman, who lives in the home, pressed her alarm button.
The two police officers who were first on the scene went in and tried to carry her outside.
"When the first public safety officers arrived, they were taking an elderly female out of the home. Those two police officers started having difficulty breathing, a burning sensation basically in the throat," said Alvin Henderson, of Allegheny County Emergency Management. "As additional responders came onto the scene and entered the structure, they were also experiencing they same type of signs and symptoms – some difficulty with breathing."
In all, six firefighters, two police officers, one paramedic and the woman - who is in her nineties - were taken for medical treatment. All were treated and released, except for one person who had a previous medical condition.
Henderson said they are not ruling anything out as to the cause of the fumes as the investigation continues.
Meanwhile, the conditions of the woman, police officers and firefighters have not been released.
Stay with KDKA for the latest on this developing situation.
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